Rembrandt lighting is created by placing the light at 45 degrees to the subject as shown in the diagram above with the light at 45 degrees from the camera position and 45 degrees above the subject. The result should be a shadow cast across the face from the nose and shadow on the side of the face opposite the light, which gives a triangle of light under the eye. This is highly effective lighting as the shadows give the face a three dimensional quality in a flat photograph. The technique takes its name from the artist Rembrandt whose subjects for his paintings were lit with this lighting technique.
The style of lighting was developed by Rembrandt from the work of Caravaggio, who he was heavily influenced by. In the painting Portrait of Jacob de Gheyn III above the characteristic triangle under the eye is present. Rembrandt’s studio can be visited in Amsterdam, where one wall is constructed of large windows to create the 45 degree lighting effect. Rembrandt lighting is used extensively in film and photography because of its natural look.
